G7 Summit Off to a Great Start as Trump Accuses Canada of Burning Down the White House

Last week, in all his infinite wisdom, Donald Trumpdecided to alienate the U.S.’s most important allies more than he already has by slapping steel and aluminum tariffs on Canada, Mexico, and the European Union on dubious “national security” grounds. As expected, the response was shock, outrage, and retaliation. European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker called the tariffs “unjustified,” saying that Trump had left the E.U. “no choice” but to hit back with levies of its own. Mexico’s Economy Minister Ildefonso Guajardocalled it “a sad day for international trade,” imposing $3 billion in tariffs on U.S. goods. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, whose government responded with duties that could hit $16.6 billion on steel, aluminum, beer kegs, whisky, maple syrup, and other goods, declared the measures “an affront” to Canadian soldiers who have died fighting alongside their American counterparts, listing the many instances in which Canada has had the U.S.’s back. Now, with less than two days to go until the G7 summit kicks off in La Malbaie, Quebec, has Trump devised a strategy to bring the world leaders he’s needlessly antagonized to the negotiating table, and put a stop to his ill-advised trade wars before they get further out of hand? Not exactly!

Instead, according to The Washington Post, Trump is gearing up to escalate tensions, after a meeting of G7 finance ministers ended last week with officials from the six other countries telling Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin to pass on to Trump their “unanimous concern and disappointment” over the tariffs. White House officials are reportedly looking into ways to hit Canada, the host of the summit, with additional tariffs, discussing whether or not to have Trump refuse to sign a traditional joint agreement at the conclusion of the meeting, a stunt that would be sure to please his base. “This administration likes to threaten and then they often don’t follow through on the threats,” Jamie Fly, senior fellow and director of the Future of Geopolitics and Asia programs at the German Marshal Fund, told the Post. “In this case . . . they have followed through, at least for now. . . . We’re entering new territory with these trade actions here. There really is longterm damage being done to the relationships.”

Luckily, Trump has the mental acuity to run intellectual circles around his adversaries and ultimately get what he wants for the U.S. Just kidding—this is what we’re working with here:

President Donald Trump and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had a testy phone call on May 25 over new tariffs imposed by the Trump administration targeting steel and aluminum imports coming from Canada, including one moment during the conversation in which Trump made an erroneous historical reference, sources familiar with the discussion told CNN.

According to the sources, Trudeau pressed Trump on how he could justify the tariffs as a “national security” issue. In response, Trump quipped to Trudeau, “Didn’t you guys burn down the White House?” referring to the War of 1812.

When asked if the comment was received as a joke, one source on the call said: “To the degree one can ever take what is said as a joke. The impact on Canada and ultimately on workers in the U.S. won’t be a laughing matter.”

The problem, obviously, is that it was the British, not Canada, who burned down the White House during the War of 1812. The British, as most people outside of the area moron who is our president are aware, were retaliating for America’s attack on York, Ontario, a territory that was then a British colony. In any case, stay tuned for Friday, when Trump kicks off the summit by slapping extra tariffs on the European Union as payback for France bombing Pearl Harbor.

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Speaking of tariffs . . .

Our allies aren’t the only ones who hate them. On Wednesday, Senator Bob Corkerintroduced a bipartisan bill that would require the president to get the approval of Congress to enact tariffs on national-security grounds, as Trump did last week. The bill, which was co-sponsored by five Republicans and four Democrats, enraged Trump, who made his feelings known to Corker in a phone call that, per the senator from Tennessee, dragged on so long he was forced to pull a Gary Cohn. “He’s obviously not pleased with this effort,” Corker told The Washington Post. “We had a heartfelt conversation. Finally, a lot of time had gone by, and I had other meetings.”

Two people resigned from the E.P.A. today

Strangely, neither of them were Scott Pruitt. Instead, Sarah Greenwalt, senior counsel to the E.P.A. chief, and Millan Hupp, the scheduler who was asked, among other things, to source Pruitt a used Trump International Hotel mattress, are said to have decided to quit the agency. According to a top E.P.A. official, Hupp was “tired of being thrown under the bus by Pruitt,” and sick of seeing her name constantly associated with his scandals. While Pruitt told The Atlantic the 26-year-old aide “will be sorely missed,” others seem to be taking the news of the departure less well. When reached by phone, E.P.A. spokesman Jahan Wilcox declined to comment, telling reporter Elaina Plott, “You have a great day. You’re a piece of trash.”

Wharton: Trump’s immigration plans would kill 1.3 million jobs in a decade

The president has strongly endorsed a bill introduced by U.S. Sens. Tom Cotton and David Perdue called the Raise Act, which adds to the president’s campaign promise to focus on illegal immigration by going after legal immigrants as well.

Its proponents say they want to welcome only “good” immigrants—those with a lot of money and high levels of education. But the Wharton report finds that the legislation, which is supposedly aimed at boosting economic growth and creating more American jobs, would actually have the opposite effect.

“By 2027, our analysis projects that RAISE will reduce G.D.P. by 0.7% relative to current law, and reduce jobs by 1.3 million,” the study says. “By 2040, G.D.P. will be about 2% lower and jobs will fall by 4.6 million.”

Members of three outside panels that advise the U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau on financial-industry abuses say they’ve been fired by acting director Mick Mulvaney, calling the move the Republican’s latest effort to destroy the watchdog.

Participants in the main group, the C.F.P.B.’s Consumer Advisory Board, said in a statement that they learned of their terminations on a call Wednesday. Board members said they were also told that they won’t be allowed to re-apply for positions when the agency reconstitutes the panels.

“Mick Mulvaney is only interested in obtaining views from his inner circle, and has no interest in hearing the perspectives of those who work with struggling American families,” Ann Baddour, the board’s chair, said in a statement. Senator Elizabeth Warren, who helped set up the C.F.P.B. and whose memory Mulvaney wants to expunge from the bureau, tweeted that the acting director “has no intention of putting consumers above financial firms that cheat them. This is what happens when you put someone in charge of an agency they think shouldn’t exist.”

The bureau, meanwhile, claims everyone is getting hysterical over nothing. “The bureau has not fired anyone,” John Czwartacki, the agency’s spokesman, told Bloomberg. “The outspoken members of the Consumer Advisory Board seem more concerned about protecting their taxpayer-funded junkets to Washington, D.C., and being wined and dined by the bureau than protecting consumers.” You hear that? It’s Mulvaney—who’s sided with payday lenders, issued only a single enforcement action, and suggested the president could rule the agency unconstitutional—who’s sticking his neck out for consumers.

Elsewhere!

A Russian Oligarch’s $500 Million Yacht Is in the Middle of Britain’s Costliest Divorce (N.Y.T.)

Mark Zuckerberg Is Burning Through Congress’s Last Ounce of Goodwill (the Hive)

Ivanka Trump Was In Contact With A Russian Who Offered A Trump-Putin Meeting (BuzzFeed)